


A Ball to Remember

by Aiskuriimuneko



Category: Bakugan Battle Brawlers
Genre: F/M, M/M, Masquerade Ball, Party, heads up the gus/spectra parts are minor, i felt possessed to write this and all bc of the one dumb joke, whatever, you'll know which one when you see it
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-08
Updated: 2021-03-08
Packaged: 2021-03-14 19:55:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,580
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29922033
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aiskuriimuneko/pseuds/Aiskuriimuneko
Summary: The Resistance go undercover at a masquerade ball.
Relationships: Aelia Taran/Ace Grit, Gus Grav/Spectra Phantom | Keith Fermin
Kudos: 3





	A Ball to Remember

**Author's Note:**

> again. haven't seen much of new vestroia so i've researched some stuff while the rest is just ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯
> 
> features senotsuri's oc, aelia taran! heres's where you can find more about her, she's a pretty cool character! (https://senotsuri.tumblr.com/tagged/aelia%20taran)
> 
> this takes place after episode 12 so the resistance knows who spectra is and they've already destroyed the first dimensional controller in alpha city. 
> 
> and im also making use of the "ace used to be the prince" au where he's zenoheld's firstborn son but the right to rule is passed down to hydron when ace says no to bakugan cruelty lmao among other things.

It was a starry night when Aelia and Ace found themselves by the front gate of a large mansion. One that was bustling with the activity of New Vestroia’s upperclass.

It was a masquerade party, more specifically. A lavish event hosted by the King himself as a way to raise public opinion of the monarch as numerous sightings of the Resistance were causing unease across the population. The party was held at a grandiose estate in the city were the King and Prince lived and looked every bit what one would expect from the ridiculously wealthy.

The gala was the perfect opportunity for a reconnaissance mission. So far, the Resistance had not had any luck finding the a way to Beta City’s Dimensional Controller and with the Vexos attending the event along with several noble families, it would allow the Resistance to get close and gather some much needed intel. Marucho had wasted no time in hacking the guest list and adding empty slots for the members who would be sneaking in. The question then remained, who would be suitable for a difficult mission such as this?

It was quickly decided that Dan, Marucho and Baron wouldn’t be going. Dan and Baron lacked the formal training required of noblemen and their general acting was less than stellar, to say the least. A similar issue presented itself with Marucho’s acting skills, though he elected to work from behind the curtains and make sure everything went according to plan instead of being part of the play itself. Mira seemed like a good candidate for an infiltration mission, being from a noble family herself. However, she was deemed unfit by the rest of the team once they learned that Spectra was one of the Vexos in attendance. Despite Mira heatedly arguing her case, there was a general consensus that she wouldn’t be able to focus on the mission if Spectra was close by. Not when his true identity had recently come to light.

Which left Aelia, Shun and Ace. Shun didn’t let his team deliberate for long before he voiced that he wasn’t planning on going to the party undercover. In a similar case with Marucho, Shun chose to stay behind and monitor any suspicious movement, making sure his undercover teammates would be able to make a successful escape should the mission fail. Ace was more than suited for the job as he had a similar background as Mira, but the same couldn’t be said for Aelia. She did, however, make up for the lack of upper class etiquette with her unwavering poker face and it was remarked that she wouldn’t be as easily distracted during the party. As such, she was chosen to accompany Ace.

They set out on their mission once they had been properly disguised and their fake identities were set. The evening breeze was warm and pleasant as they approached the imposing golden gates of the estate and had their ID cards checked in by the guards. Only when they had crossed the threshold of the mansion's entrance, did they allow themselves to relax.

Inside the estate was a large ballroom where most guests were gathering. It was furnished with gorgeous crystal chandeliers hanging from the ceiling, lanterns that provided a warm lighting and marbled floor interior. The sound of live music and joyous chatter grew louder as Ace and Aelia joined the other attendees inside. 

“Alright guys. We’re in,” Ace spoke quietly into his carefully concealed earpiece communicator.

If one were to take a look at him, they would hardly be able to tell he was a member of the very group these noblemen despised. His formal attire consisted of a crisp black coat, a lavender waistcoat, and dark pants. Ace’ hair had been smoothed down and slicked back, the longer strands of hair pulled into a low ponytail. Shun and Baron had fretted over his hair for a good hour with gels and combs at the ready, claiming that Ace’ unruly mane would surely get them discovered before they even reached the party. His mask of choice was midnight blue with gold details outlining the edges and a black feather attached to the side.

The pair slowly made their way through a sea of guests _—_ each wearing their own unique mask — while silently remarking how the gala was truly extravagant in every sense of the word. Tables were lined with all manner of delicious finger foods and drinks, with well-dressed nobles browsing the different goods and engaging in small talk.

“ _Good. Now you’ll want to blend in with the crowd. Try to mingle a little but don’t draw attention to yourselves,”_ Mira answered. “ _We got eyes on the Vexos who are and aren’t attending the party, so we’ll let you know if you run into any of them._ ”

“Copy that,” Aelia responded into her own earpiece. Her long red hair had been braided and wound into a bun in an effort to make her look less conspicuous. The bangs that usually covered the left side of her face were similarly swept back so her face was more open. Despite the mask currently obscuring half of her face, Aelia couldn’t help but feel a tad exposed like this. Her mask in question was golden and adorned with intricate black lines and swirls, subtly matching Ace’ mask while still complimenting her dark and puffy ball gown. She tugged her gloved arm snuggly around the elbow Ace had offered her and looked at him determinedly. “Let’s go.”

Ace nodded and led them further inside. Quite a few circles had formed where attendees were chatting loudly amongst themselves, many carrying drinks in fancy glasses. While the two were smoothly weaving around guests, Aelia caught sight of the three Vexos who had appeared on the guest list; Mylene, Gus and Spectra. They were located on a ballroom staircase leading to the second floor, overlooking the guests while dressed impeccably for the occasion. Spectra was funnily enough wearing a different mask today.

Their attentive gazes on the partygoers immediately let the two know what was going on. “They’re trying to see if anyone’s acting out of the ordinary,” Aelia concluded.

“ _We’ve already made sure that Volt, Lync and Shadow aren’t lurking around at this party. We caught them on a surveillance camera in Alpha City a little while ago_.”

“I figured they weren’t here to socialize,” Ace replied dryly. “They split up so they can be be ready to deal with us in case something happens, whether that’s here or in the cities. Smart move.”

“In that case, we’ll have to play our parts properly,” Aelia said. It wasn’t long before they were approached by a few younger guests as the two were looking over the buffet spread. Ace would offer his name “Elliot Pierce II” with a practiced bow and gesture to his ‘girlfriend’ so she may offer an introduction as well.

“Lorelei Cosmo of the House of Cosmo, how do you do?” she would reply sweetly with a neat courtesy of her own. They would exchange pleasantries but nothing beyond the standard greetings if it could be helped. If asked about their families or occupation, Ace would give a curt description of how he was the firstborn son of a wealthy family empire on Vestal, one his younger brother was currently overseeing while he was doing business on New Vestroia. The cover story rolled easily off his tongue as if he had told it time and time again.

“And what about your beautiful company?” a young man asked as he gestured to Aelia. She repressed the urge to roll her eyes and instead brushed her hair back in a manner she hoped appeared shy.

“I’m from a family line of scientists, my good sir. We’re currently studying the Bakugan in order to understand them better as a species," she smiled. "New Vestroia seems ripe with such opportunity, wouldn’t you agree?”

“Oh, certainly!” the nobleman nodded. “Why just last month, my family and I attended one of those tournaments in Alpha City I heard so much about. I must say, I’m rather fond of the system the King has set up here,” he laughed. “I never imagined how entertaining it could be to watch those dumb brutish things tumble about!”

Aelia almost winced at that, her lips curling in distaste. She immediately felt the muscles in Ace’ arm tense and subtly pinched his hand so he would snap out of it. It would do them no good to be defensive of their friends at this moment. “Quite right you are,” Aelia giggled but felt that it took a considerable amount of effort.

They excused themselves shortly after that, finding a somewhat secluded area where they could sit and relax for a while. As soon as Ace took a seat, he let out a sigh that was so deep and weary, Aelia couldn’t help but feel sorry for him. “I forgot how much I absolutely hate this,” he spoke, disgust dripping from his words.

“It must be terrible to hear this sort of thing again,” Aelia replied, her gaze downcast. There was no doubt in her mind that Mira, Baron and Ace must have had it pretty rough before they decided to form the Resistance. She placed a hand on Ace’ shoulder and gave it a squeeze. “But we knew what we were getting ourselves into by coming here. Don’t let these people get to you, Ace.”

Ace sighed again, letting his hands sneak under his mask to rub at his eyes. “That’s easier said than done,” he murmured.

Aelia said nothing, her fingers bunching up the material of her dress in a rather useless manner. She wondered what kind of life Ace had before Mira and him created the Resistance. He never spoke about his family but that was probably a given. Most people would brand you a traitor for daring to speak against the crown, much less actively fighting it. Perhaps, she thought unbidden, perhaps he had even been disowned by the very people he considered family. She had little time to dwell on these thoughts as the unmistakable cords of a waltz song began to play. She looked around to see attendees couple up as they approached the dancefloor before looking back to Ace. Aelia muted her earpiece's microphone before standing up and facing him, a slight smile tugging at her painted lips. She motioned for Ace to do the same with his communicator.

“Shall we dance, good sir?” she asked with a hint of teasing in her voice. Ace’ expression was partially obscured by his mask but she figured he was giving her one of his signature looks of skepticism. Call it intuition.

“Do you even know how to waltz?” he replied with a question of his own.

“No, but that’s the beauty of social dancing. You get to do all the work,” Aelia smiled as she put a hand on her hip. “And let me preface this by saying this is the only time I’ll let you lead.”

Ace looked at Aelia for a moment before letting out an amused snort. “I’m not doubting that.” He rose from this seat and offered Aelia his hand before guiding her to the ballroom. “But sure, I guess I can let you have this dance.”

“How gracious of you.”

They found themselves amongst many other dancing couples and Aelia quickly felt that her idea for cheering up Ace wasn’t quite as thought out in hindsight. She had next to no idea how to dance, much less at a social function such as this and the guests would likely find that strange. “I know I talked a big game earlier but um,” she began. “I’m not so sure we should be doing this after all.”

Ace didn’t seem fazed by Aelia’s nervousness. He took her right hand in his left and looked her straight in the eye. “Don’t worry about it. I’ll be doing all the work, remember?” he replied with a grin and a matching glint in his eye. It should be concerning since it was Ace but Aelia found herself captivated by his strange display of confidence. She hoped she could draw strength from it and let it calm her nerves. In fact, she was suddenly immensely glad to not have the others listening in during her moment of weakness.

“Relax,” Ace repeated, his voice turning uncharacteristically soft. He put his right hand on her left shoulder blade and squeezed her hand with his left. “Place your hand on my arm, just below the shoulder.” Aelia did as instructed and earned herself a small smile. “Good. So the key to waltz is the counting of steps. It’s done in threes and I’ll be counting it with you so you have a better idea of how it’s timed with the music. Okay?”

Aelia nodded, not knowing what else to do. She was completely at Ace’ mercy and she hoped he wouldn’t make her regret it. “Okay.”

It turned out that Aelia had little cause for concern. Ace was an excellent lead, his hold strong and guiding as they glid along the dancefloor, swaying in synchronized steps. There was a bit of struggling with matching the tempo at first but Ace soon found that he needn’t keep count of their steps for very long before Aelia got the hang of it. She couldn’t help the excited grin that bloomed on her lips when she saw Ace fighting to suppress a proud smile. “You’re a quick study, Ms. Cosmo.”

Aelia allowed herself to fall back into her designated role with little distaste this time when she replied, “I owe it all to my fine leader, good sir,” she smiled. "I daresay he's earned the right to lead me in future dances to come."

"How gracious of you," Ace repeated with a grin and Aelia couldn't help the bout of giggles that followed.

It was all too soon, in her opinion, when the song faded into silence and a round of applause followed in its wake. Ace and Aelia didn’t separate from their hold, instead waiting as a slower song played and they repeated the steps of the waltz in a full circle around the ballroom, soft light filtering down from the chandeliers above.

Ace was so close as they moved in sync, firm and assuring in his lead. If Aelia didn’t know any better, she would say the mission and the disguise had transformed him into a completely different person. “Do all nobles lead as well as you or are you just the exception?” she asked, full of giddiness.

An expression caught between bittersweetness and surprise flashed briefly over Ace’ face before he spoke. “I wouldn’t be surprised if I was,” he replied cryptically. He dipped her with little effort and Aelia watched from below as his eyes refused to meet hers. And just like that, the spell was over and they were going through the same steps again.

Aelia was transfixed by the pregnant wording of his answer. “What do you mean?” she asked, confused.

Ace’ hold on her hand loosened slightly in hesitation. He looked to the side briefly, almost as if he second-guessed whether his earpiece really was on mute. “It’s best if you don’t know,” he replied. Another pause. “But. . .maybe I’ll tell you someday.”

Aelia didn’t press the matter further. If there was one thing she knew, it was the tormenting weight of secrets and how hard it could be to divulge them. She nodded, her eyes holding Ace’ gaze. “Okay. I’ll wait.”

They danced through a couple more songs before taking a break to get some refreshments. Aelia was sipping a sweet pink drink from a flute-shaped glass, her other hand carrying a drink for Ace when she heard Marucho’s voice through the communicator.

 _“Guys, Mylene is leaving the room.”_ Aelia blinked and looked around for the woman in particular, seeing nobody among the guests who fit her description. She set down their drinks in front of Ace and tapped his shoulder to get his attention away from the remaining dancing couples. “Hm?” he said, looking at her.

“Mylene just left,” Aelia informed him. She shook her head and unmuted her earpiece again. “Are you even keeping watch?”

“Of course I am,” Ace retorted, gesturing to the center couple with his thumb. “I’ve been watching Spectra and Gus dance a mean foxtrot for the past five minutes. I’d say we’re _all_ watching them.” 

Aelia did indeed notice how everyone were taken by the two Vexos. Their movements and steps were perfectly in sync and beautifully coordinated with the soft notes of the piano currently playing. She doubted Ace would be able to teach her an advanced choreography like _that_ , no matter how good of a leader he was when it came to ballroom dancing.

“Ignore them. Mylene’s taking advantage of the distraction to leave the party. We have to go after her.”

Ace nodded before following Aelia outside. They slipped past the guests with as much grace and courtesy as two undercover rebels could muster, though it seemed unnecessary when their eyes were paying more attention to the dancing than to the pair currently leaving. They left the festive atmosphere of the ballroom and traversed through a considerably more secluded corridor as they looked for Mylene. The sound of her voice eventually drifted from around a corner and Aelia and Ace pressed their backs up against the stone walls in an attempt to eavesdrop on her conversation. Aelia could spot Mylene from her position, the Aquos brawler's back turned towards them as she appeared to be speaking to someone through her gauntlet.

“You have sharper ears than me, can you make out what she’s saying?” Ace whispered. Aelia nodded, her eyes closed as she inched her head closer and focused on picking up lines of the conversation. Her pointy ears twitched just the slightest bit.

“Newly captured Bakugan to be brought to Beta City. . .ship awaits manual access from Mylene. . .no activity from the Resistance so far. . .” Aelia repeated, eyes still closed. “. . .she’s heading out now to make the delivery.”

“ _Awesome_ ,” Ace praised. "Well, I mean. It's terrible but once we see how Mylene gets into Beta city, we'll free the Bakugan for sure." He proceeded to press a hand to his ear. “Did you guys catch that?”

 _“Roger! We’re sending Shun out to tail her,”_ Dan piped in. _“Good work team—”_

There was suddenly a loud thump coming from the communication link, the feedback of which rang out like a terrible shriek and agitated Aelia’s sensitive hearing. With a yelp, she clutched her ears and waiting till the ringing subsided in her ears.

 _“Whoops, my bad,”_ Baron chuckled nervously. _“Dropped my earpiece. You guys okay?”_

Mylene’s conversation was cut short and the next thing the two heard was the loud clicking of her heels approaching their location.

“We’ll be discovered if we stay here,” Ace hissed quietly, taking Aelia’s hand. “Let’s make a break for it.”

“If we try to escape through the mansion, we’ll get caught by Gus and Spectra instead!” Aelia whispered back through grit teeth, snatching her hand back. “This will all have been for _nothing_.”

Ace resisted the urge to sigh and expose their presence any further. “What do you want us to do then, huh? We can’t just stay put, she’ll know we overheard her!”

Aelia knew exactly what to do. With a sudden burst of confidence, she pulled Ace close and cupped the sides of his face with her hands.

“Put your arms around me,” Aelia demanded, her eyes locked with Ace’. “And kiss me like you mean it.”

She silenced any confusion he might have voiced with an urgent kiss, stealing his words and his lips. Though stiff at first, he quickly melted into the embrace and hugged her close, moving his lips against Aelia’s in a way that was not unlike their waltz. Aelia sighed into the kiss just as Mylene turned the corner and spotted them making out. Her nose wrinkled at the display. “ _Gross_. Why do I even bother coming along to these things?” she muttered as she turned on her heel and made a beeline for the exit. “It’s either random nobodies sucking face or Spectra and his boyfriend acting like a married couple. I could be watching television. Or have Shadow do my nails. This job blows.”

Ace and Aelia paid no mind to her ramblings as she disappeared into the night. Ace pulled away from the kiss with quite the dazed look on his face, his fingers still laced together on the small of Aelia’s back. Aelia wore an equally tranquil look on her face, a blush dusting across the bridge of her nose. She opened her mouth and a string of pleased vibrations bubbled out.

 _“Holy sh—Aelia, are you_ purring? _”_ Dan asked, sounding somewhat surprised but also very much amused.

Quickly remembering where they were and what they were doing, Aelia blinked and shook herself awake from her dreamy state. “I’m not, I just,” Aelia attempted to deny firmly, albeit a bit too quickly to be nonchalant. If there had been a good time for them to have muted their microphones, it would have been now for sure. “ _Ahem_. I had something in my throat, that’s all.”

The finishing blow came, unsurprisingly, from Shun. _“You mean aside from Ace’ tongue just now?”_

Ace’ face turned bright green in seconds. “Oh hush.” 

**Author's Note:**

> hope you liked <33 it was p fun to write about these two!
> 
> so the fake identities. i didn't put much thought behind them beyond wanting them to sound fancy? pierce is a nod to percival. lorelei sounded like a cool vestal name lmao. 
> 
> the fake family stuff was definitely inspired by their actual family backgrounds. and aelia's mask is gold and shaped in a way that resembles the horns of a gundalian.


End file.
